OEX® Overview

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The Index Strategy Workshop is designed to assist individuals in learning about various index option strategies. These discussions and materials are for educational purposes only and are not intended to provide investment advice. For the sake of simplicity, taxes, commissions and other trading costs have been omitted from the discussions and strategies. These should be taken into account when making investment decisions. These strategies are based on hypothetical situations involving a European-style, cash-settled index and should only be considered as examples of potential trading approaches.

Investment decisions should not be made based upon worksheet outcomes.

OEX: Standard and Poor’s 100®Index

The Standard & Poor's 100 Index (OEX) is a capitalization-weighted index of 100 blue chip, large cap stocks from the U.S equities marketplace from diverse industry sector groups. It is a broad market index; together these 100 stocks represent over 50% of the market capitalization of the S&P 500® Index. The impact of a price change in any component stock on the level of the overall index is proportional to the issue’s total market value. Options on the S&P 100 are used primarily by hedgers and speculators in conjunction with bullish or bearish opinions on large-cap U.S. stocks.

Summary of OEX Index Option Contract Specifications

Underlying Index
Standard & Poor's 100 Index (OEX)

Multiplier
$100: contract size = $100 x OEX index level

Exercise Style
American: they may be exercised at any time before expiration.

Expiration Date
Saturday immediately following the third Friday of the expiration month until February 15, 2015. On and after February 15, 2015, the expiration date will be the third Friday of the expiration month.

Settlement
PM-settled: the exercise settlement value is calculated using the last (closing) reported sales price in the primary market of each component security on the last business day (usually a Friday) before the expiration date or on the day the exercise notice is properly submitted if exercised (early) before expiration. The cash settlement amount is equal to the difference between the exercise settlement value and the exercise (strike) price of the option, multiplied by $100. Exercise will result in delivery of cash on the business day following expiration.

Exercise Settlement Value
Disseminated with symbol OEX

Last Trading Day
Trading of expiring contracts will ordinarily cease on the business day (usually a Friday) preceding the expiration date

Trading Hours
8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Central Time (Chicago time)

For more information about the OEX index and OEX index options click here.